What Season is it?

Fall break gave me the chance to have some much needed down time. I missed out on a trip to Vegas with some girlfriends, but in the long run what I needed most was to be home. Did I get to stay up until 5 am, hang poolside with a fruity drink and gamble a little bit? No, but I did get to watch a Nebraska football game in a bar, and not be the one serving! I got to be a customer and I got to enjoy socializing. That doesn’t happen often. I also got to attend a wedding, one I’d been looking forward to for a long time. And I got to go to a ballet with my little sister.

If you ever get the chance to witness high school sweethearts marry – do it. It was a beautiful ceremony full of love. And it’s as if it was meant to be, because it rained for what seemed like weeks leading up to the wedding and then on the day of it was a gorgeous, sunny day. Annnddd then we got 3 inches of snow the very next day. No joke. In October, following a top 10 autumn day in Nebraska.

The wedding did to me what most weddings do to girls, got me in my feels. I’m single. Famously single, lol. And if you’re 30 and above you’re saying, “oh girl, live life, don’t get tied down, you have the rest of your life ahead of you!” And you above 30’s are right. But, you’re also probably saying that from the comfort of your shared home staring into the eyes of your loved one over the chicken carbonara you just cooked together. The thing is, I’m pretty built for companionship. I’m considerate and thoughtful, caring and loyal. But, I’m famously single as I said, not because I haven’t had the chance to find a relationship, but because I have chosen not to. I’ve been presented with numerous options and I’ve enjoyed the time getting to know said options. But, something always holds me back. And that’s okay. Until it’s not anymore. I’ve found some strong contenders, but I’ve also found some that have provided me with enough stories to fill numerous blog posts and ain’t nobody got time for that.

I wasn’t born in the right era, which rings true when thinking of the fashion styles I prefer, but it is also the case when it comes to relationships. I’m most comfortable with old fashioned dates and fun, sweet surprises. I enjoy the build up of getting to know someone through communication, and not the electronic kind. Texting and Snapchat drive me bonkers sometimes, so maintaining contact with me can be a problem for some people. If you pass me up because I don’t answer your snaps or reply to your texts when you think I should, well then I’m sorry, but you’re not the one. Call me, Facetime me, hang out with me in person. It’s like we forget we have those options because we’re too buried in our smartphones.

Nowadays people are “talking” to each other, but also to 3 other people. I don’t get it, in past eras “dating” was encouraged and that meant you weren’t committed to one another yet, because why would you after meeting just one or two times? It also meant you might go on a date with someone else who you’d just met and you’d navigate dating that way, eventually finding someone you connected with. But these days, you work really hard to make one person think they’re the only person you’re “talking” to when in reality, there are others you’re interested in. But, it’s like a fatal error to let the other involved parties know this. And this creates this cycle of uncertainty and doubt. “Does he like me, does he not?” “Should I have said that?” “Was that too much, did I get too serious too soon?” “Can I post a photo, or will he be weird about it?” There are some great one-liners from our era of dating, this is one of my favorites:

Girl to best friend: “oooh I met someone!!”

Girl to best friend, 3 days later: “never mind.”

That rings too true to some of us, doesn’t it?

Here’s a one-liner I hate, “it’s cuffing season.” I hate it because it’s true. Being single is fine, until you’re getting tired of doing “couple” things alone and this time of year reminds you of that. Instagram reminds us of that… I love all my friends in fantastic relationships and I am so, so happy for them, but your pumpkin patch, paint yourself silly, road trip, concert going, rainy cuddle sesh dates get me in my feels man!

Lonely, but definitely not alone,

Tristen